Review: #156
Name: Streak
Brand: Transformers
Allegiance: Autobot
Line: Masterpiece
Year of Release: 2013
Size Class: Masterpiece (MP-18)
Variations: a retool of MP-17 Prowl and a later variation was MP-18 Smokescreen
PACKAGING AND CONTENTS:
A Masterpiece figure, therefore the box will be quite nice. It has a matte finish while the photos of the figure are glossy.
The back shows off the toy and some gimmicks, including how it scales with MP-10 Optimus.
The left side shows off the robot in a different pose.
While the right shows off the car mode.
Streak also comes with a bio card in colour showing the art.
The other side contains the actual bio and pictures of the toy, as well as tech specs. The only accessory Streak comes with is his gun, so it feels a little bit bare in terms of extra accessories, especially compared to fellow Masterpieces such as Sideswipe and its recolours.
VEHICLE MODE:
As displayed prominently on the box, Streak transforms into a licensed Nissan Fairlady 280Z-T. Just putting it out here first, this is an amazing vehicle mode.
It is hard to find any faults with this mode, Streak looks great all around. The tail lights are painted, he features an exhaust pipe and you can barely see any robot parts sticking out.
The Nissan badge is displayed proudly on the hood, and the only thing that breaks the realism is the Autobot symbol, it would be nice if the designers could somehow find a way to hide that in this mode, but it's no biggie.
Streak is halfway between a Deluxe and a Voyager classed figure, both in terms of size and mass. He just looks bigger above since Trailcutter is such a small Deluxe in vehicle mode.
Despite being an old model from nearly 40 years ago, Streak looks so sexy. There are sculpted details all over the body which really brings the figure to life.
Streak is covered in paint. From the gunmetal grey to the beautiful glossy black, it brings an absolute premium feel to the figure, just like a Masterpiece figure should. Streak actually does this better than Sideswipe ever did.
Even though there are no die-cast metal, Streak is hefty enough to not feel cheap, and of course, the premium paint job helps. I think there weren't many samples that had quality control issues.
Streak has clearly defined windscreen wipers. You can still see the red torso parts and shoulder cannons through the smoky plastic.
There seems to be some 'tech' detailing in the sculpting for the skylight. The silver outlines looks really good.
The side mirrors are made of a softer plastic. Streak also has silver hubcaps and painted indicators (which is a pleasant surprise), all that's missing are painted license plates.
There are some transformation panel lines throughout the car. The whole vehicle shell has been painted.
The rear has a molded wiper too. You may notice a slot in the rear bumper, this is for the Amazon exclusive launchers (which I unfortunately do not have) to attach.
Next, you can attach the gun into the car. To do that, you have to fold the handle up to bring down the attachment point.
You have to detach the doors and rear to flip up a black piece to attach the gun.
It looks okay like this although it feels as if something is lacking since the gun is pretty thin head on.
Lastly, Streak has some interaction with MP-10. He fits into Optimus' trailer.
He can roll down the ramp properly since the hood juts so far out.
A fantastic vehicle mode which looks amazing with all the sculpted details and being slathered in paint. You can tell from the photos just how glossy the black is. One of the best vehicle modes ever.
TRANSFORMATION:
Perfectly balanced between easy enough to make it fun and complex enough to be interesting. The only part where it can make you wary is the small pieces with the side mirrors attached. Thanks to the softer plastic, you have to be careful to only use the harder plastic to fold it down and into the body. Also, the way the torso clips to the hood makes it seem as if it could scrap the paint off those side mirror pieces (and can be a tight fit if you didn't fold it completely in). The feet can also be unorthodox, it can be hard to figure out the first time. In subsequent transformations, you would come to appreciate how it works.
ROBOT MODE:
As great as Streak was in vehicle mode, his robot mode is no pushover either. Aiming for extreme cartoon accuracy, it succeeds in this area, not to mention that it is quite accurate to the G1 toy as well.
The biggest kibble piece is the vehicle roof sitting on his back, although it can collapse a bit more, it sits flush enough with his body that it's not too bad. The feet are also hollow due to the transformation.
The head sculpt is great, although the expression could use more emotions. It is fully painted and the red used is very rich.
The feet managed to keep the blocky look from the G1 cartoon while also being slim enough to be versatile.
The heelspurs help Streak even more stable. His feet is also angled forward a bit. One minor thing that could be improved is if the side windows could tuck in further instead of jutting out from the back of the legs.
Now, Streak features in-built shoulder cannons, to deploy them, you detach the windshield and flip it up.
They are compacted in storage form so they look truncated and short.
You can extend them until they click and angle them in however you wish. Sadly, they are not painted which kinda sucks with the dull grey plastic used. They also don't look very powerful and while they tout that it is cartoon accurate, I think in the cartoon, Streak's cannons had sharper tips.
The photo above shows how small the box he comes in is.
A lot of red comes out in robot mode, the thighs and torso.
The doors can angle upwards but one worrying thing is that the joint that allows them to do so is made from clear plastic, which mean it could potentially crack and break easily.
All his fingers are jointed as one, which means his hand can open and close. It is more of that dull grey plastic, which feels odd that they didn't bother to paint it when the rest of the thing is so nice.
Streak's gun looks good, with a great sculpt.
There is a slot inside of Streak's hand which corresponds to the peg in the handle of the gun, such that Streak holds it very securely.
Streak stretches during transformation, so that he is approximately Voyager sized now.
He is approximately 3/5 of Optimus' height.
In terms of articulation, Streak has is all, from a waist swivel to pivoting ankle.s
His elbows are also double jointed and his head can turn side to side and look upwards.
Streak looks just the tiniest smudge elongated thanks to the long thighs and shins. Streak is stable in most poses thanks to the range of motion his ankles have. He's also easy to balance since he isn't too top-heavy.
His chest, which is the hood of the car, juts out a fair way from his torso.
With the addition of more unpainted parts, Streak loses some of the premium feel from the vehicle mode.
Streak's wrists can rotate. If need be, you can also use Streak's double jointed knees to your advantage.
A stunning robot mode that doesn't disappoint. Sure, Streak lacks some gimmicks so his play value is limited to posing and his weapons. However, Streak displays wonderfully well and presents an excellent upgrade to his original figure.
OVERALL:
Pretty much a perfect figure. He has a sexy and beautiful vehicle mode (although the glossy black means that any dust is easily visible) and a striking robot mode. It has some clever engineering and good attention to detail. It's hard to decide which mode to keep him in because both are so good. Highly recommended.
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